Gulf Keystone has announced the appointment of Jacobus ("Jaap") Huijskes as Non-Executive Chairman effective as of 11 April 2018, immediately following the announcement of the Company's 2017 Full Year Results.
Jaap Huijskes, who replaces Keith Lough as Chairman, joined the Board of Gulf Keystone in November 2017 as a Non-Executive Director. Today's news follows the January 2018 announcement of Mr Lough's intention to step down from the Board. Mr Huijskes selection was the result of a process undertaken by the Nominations Committee and was unanimously supported by the Board.
Jaap Huijskes has had a distinguished career in the oil and gas sector, including relevant experience in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. He was most recently a Director at OMV (AG:OMV), the largest listed Austrian oil and gas company, where he was responsible for Exploration and Production (E&P) and oversaw the Company's expansion into new territories. He also played a key role in OMV's operations in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Prior to this, Mr Huijskes held a number of senior positions at Shell, including Executive Vice President of Upstream Major Projects and Project Director at the Sakhalin Energy Investment Company, which was set up to develop the Sakhalin-II oil and gas project in Russia. He holds a Masters in Mechanical Engineering from Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands.
In addition to serving on the Board of Gulf Keystone, Mr Huijskes is currently Non-Executive Chairman of the Dutch state-owned integrated oil and gas company, Energie Beheer Nederland. He was a member of OMV's Executive Board for E&P between 2010 and 2016.
Commenting on today's announcement, Jaap Huijskes, said:
"I am delighted to have been selected to take on the Non-Executive Chairman role. Gulf Keystone has a strong investment case, underpinned by a great asset and management team. With recent positive progress, including the signing of the important Shaikan Crude Oil Sales Agreement, we are looking forward to recommencing investment into the field and generating value for our investors, as well as the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. I look forward to leading the Board and supporting the Company at this exciting time.
On behalf of the Board and everyone at GKP, I would like to thank Keith Lough for his leadership and significant contribution to the business over the past two years. It was a challenging period for the Company and we are grateful for his hard work and wise counsel. We wish him the very best for the future."
